How to GrowSpiritual Fruit

Lesson 4: The Fruit God Produces

.comTM

DiSciple TarGeTSIn this lesson, your children will...

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

g

TM

Lesson 4—The Fruit God Produces

Unit SummaryThe “Fruit of the Spirit” may be a familiar topic to many children, but kids and adults alike often misunderstand the concept of growing spiritual fruit. Many Christians describe spiritual fruit as characteristics that they should work to develop in their lives. Nothing could be further from the truth! Fruit of the Spirit is—of the Spirit. These godly traits result from God’s Spirit working in our lives, not from our efforts to be better people.

This four-week series will walk children through the process of nurturing the soil of their souls so God’s Spirit might produce genuine spiritual fruit within them. After the seed of salvation has been planted in good soil and moistened with Living Water, children will discover that their spiritual lives are like growing plants; and God is like a loving gardener. They’ll learn that as they are pruned through loving discipline and abide in Jesus, spiritual fruit will blossom in their lives. This unit will guide kids—not into being “good”—but to drawing closer to the Lord so He can conform them into Jesus’ likeness.

Lesson SummaryThe previous lessons looked at the supernatural process of producing spiritual fruit. When Christians die to themselves, the indwelling Christ produces spiritual fruit through them. This lesson focuses on the nine-fold fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5. It also examines the often-overlooked deeds of the flesh found in the same chapter. You’ll study Jesus’ parable of the weeds/tares which explains why evil co-exists with goodness. At the final harvest, Christ will separate those who love Him from those who have rejected Him. Until then, it is our job to

How to Grow Spiritual Fruit

KnowThe fruit of the Spirit and the fruit of the flesh lead in opposite directions

FeelAssured that God will someday banish evil forever

DoExplain and memorize all nine spiritual fruits

•

•

•

walk in submission to the Holy Spirit so He can produce fruit in those who remain in Him.

Paul’s Power Principle: When we yield ourselves to God, His Holy Spirit produces fruit in our lives.

�

SPARK INTERESTChoose from the following activities and ideas to engage kids and grab their attention.

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. K

arl B

astia

n / K

idol

ogy.

org

Welcome!—Fruit GuessPrint and cut out the fruit tags found at the end of this lesson—one for each child. As children arrive, randomly attach one fruit tag to each child’s back. The kids should try to determine what fruit is on their backs by asking each other questions that can be answered with only a “yes” or “no.”’ There is no prize, as some fruits will be more difficult than others—this is just a fun ice-breaker activity.

Let’s Meet-n-Greet!Turn and greet the children around you. If they haven’t already done so, help them identify what fruit is on their backs. Then have the kids ask each other what their favorite fruit is. What is their favorite junk food, too?

Did you find out what fruit was on your back? Did you also find out what each others’ favorite junk food was? Share your own. Junk food is yummy, but not too good for you! When it comes to our spiritual lives, there is also good fruit and junk food. The fruit is the good stuff that comes from our lives, and the junk is stuff that may be fun, but there’s little value in it. The junk may not be super harmful, but in the long run, if that’s all that comes out, we aren’t very healthy! Today we’ll learn about the good stuff that comes out when we grow close to God.

PowerPoint PresentationAs you plan your lesson, select PowerPoint slides that correspond to the lesson elements you choose. In the “Slide Sorter” View, you can rear-range and/or delete the slides as necessary. For descriptions of the included slides and tips on their use, see the notes accompanying each slide.

General Supplies Bibles, puppets, video projection (optional) Pencils, pens, paper

Spark Interest WELCOME!: no additional supplies LET’S PLAY!: bowls, plastic fruit, plastic bug CONNECT WITH YOUR KIDS: favorite fruit

Explore Scripture KEYVERSE: none

Inspire Action DRAMATIZE THE POINT: weight lifting equip-

ment, weight lifter, blindfold or motorcycle helmet

SUpplieS

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

gLet’s Worship!As you lead into your worship time, let the kids know that how we worship is a fruit of our walk with God. If we are growing closer to God, our love for Him will be more and more obvious. We should worship with joy. Our worship will express how much we want to know God better—and it helps us walk closer to Him.

Recommended Song: Every Move I Make by David Crowder Band

Puppet IntroLeader & puppet introduce today’s lesson. You will find a scripted version of this intro at the end of the lesson. Supplies: puppet, fake fruit

Puppet is upset because he planted his seeds from the first lesson in his backyard, and they are starting to come up. Leader asks why he is so upset. He explains, “Because some are weeds!” He tried to pull the weeds, but while he could pull some of them, he couldn’t get them all without accidentally pulling up his plants or hurting their roots. He points at the kids in the audience accusingly and says that someone snuck over to his house at night and planted weeds! The leader is sure it wasn’t anyone here, but says he has an idea of what the puppet can do. Leader says that in Matthew 13, Jesus told a story of a man who had a similar problem, and we are going to learn about it today. If the puppet listens to the story, he might get an idea of what to do.

Let’s Play!—Fruit PickerSupplies: ten bowls, nine fake fruits, giant plastic bug, candy to give away

This is a single-player game. Play as many rounds as time allows. If time allows, you can play again at the end of the service (kids will want to play again)!

Choose a child from the audience to be a contestant. On the stage, set up a long narrow table with ten bowls upside down. Show that there is one piece of fruit beneath each bowl. Under the tenth bowl, reveal a giant bug. With the contestant looking the other way, the leader mixes up the bowls. Also, block the audience from seeing where the bug is—later you will let them follow the bug’s location. The object of the game is for the contestant to choose all the bowls of fruit without choosing the one with the bug! If a chosen bowl hides fruit, the player receives a piece of candy and gets to choose again, but if the bug is underneath, it becomes someone else’s turn.

Option: After several rounds, let the audience know where the bug is and let them help by yelling instructions. The contestant may hear conflicting instructions from the audience, as not all kids may want to be helpful. If a child gets all nine from listening to friends, the leader can point out that the odds of winning without assistance are one in 54. Because the player listened to someone who knew, he or she was able to make the right choice. In life, it is the same way. The odds of making all the right choices are next to impossible, but God knows all the right choices. By listening to His voice, we can make good decisions.

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

gConnect with Your Kids

This object lesson primes the kids to think about value. Supplies: piece of your favorite fruit

Which fruit of the Spirit is most difficult for you to live out? Show your favorite fruit and eat it during this short talk. Talk about how it is easy to eat this fruit because you like it. On the other hand, it is really hard to eat (a vegetable you don’t like). Then share which fruit of the Spirit is most difficult for you to experience on your own. In your own strength and willpower, this fruit would never be seen in your life. It’s a good thing that it is a fruit of the Spirit! Share an example of a time when God helped you display this fruit. Refer to Galatians 5:17, which describes the conflict inside between what you would produce and what the Spirit can produce.

DiscipleTown VisitorShopping Mom: Just as the leader is finishing up the story, a DiscipleTown mom walks by, just having finished shopping. She has a grocery bag with fresh fruit and other items from a grocery store.

Leader: Um, hello, excuse me. Can I help you?

Mom: No, I’m fine.

Leader: Aren’t you supposed to be in the moms’ class or something?

Mom: No, I think I’m supposed to be here.

Leader: Um, I think you might be lost. Big church is right outside those doors, down the hall, up the stairs… [Give the directions for your church.]

Mom: Lost? No, someone sent me to talk about choosing fruit.

Leader: Oh, I guess I was expecting a gardener to drop by to talk about how to pick fruit.

Mom: Well, I’m kind of like a gardener…I pick fruit for my family.

Leader: I see, well, then maybe you can help us out.

Mom: I’d love to.

Leader: We’ve been learning how to grow spiritual fruit, and we’ve gotten a lot of insight from looking at how real fruit grows.

Mom: I see.

Leader: So I wonder if learning how to evaluate real fruit would help us determine what kind of fruit we should see in our lives.

Mom: Well, there are some things you can look for to determine if fruit is good or bad.

Leader: Please, give us some tips.

Mom: First of all, you want fruit that is fresh. Just because it was good two weeks ago does not mean it’s any good now. You want something that is good today.

Leader: Okay, so in our spiritual lives, God isn’t interested in what we did for Him in the past. He wants us to live for Him today.

Mom: And watch out for artificial substitutes. You want the real thing. Nothing fake, please.

Leader: I bet God would agree with that. Whatever we do for the Lord should be sincere.

Mom: And look at the label. Make sure it has a good name on it.

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

gLeader: That’s smart. We need to do things that give God a good name—not things that will hurt our testimony or Jesus’ reputation.

Mom: And don’t choose fruit that has been polluted with poisons and chemicals. You want fruit that is pure and natural.

Leader: That’s a good point. Sometimes we do good works, but with impure motives. We want people to notice us or hope we will get something in return for what we did. We need to look into our hearts and make sure our motives are pure.

Mom: You need to check for spots or blemishes. Sometimes gently squeeze the fruit to see if anything yucky comes out.

Leader: Yes, the Bible says that sin is like a blemish on our soul. During trials in life we are squeezed—and what we’re really made of on the inside comes out!

Mom: That’s good. And lastly, you need to smell the fruit. You can’t fake the smell. Good fruit will smell delicious.

Leader: Wow, this is great! The Bible says that those who are being saved are like a sweet aroma (2 Corinthians 2:15). Our fruit, our good works, must be a good fragrance to God, too!

Mom: Well, I can tell you this, I have bought fruit that looked good at the store, but when I got it home, it ended up not being good. When it comes to spiritual fruit, there will be no fooling God.

Leader: Nope, He will judge everything we do—and only what was done for Him, from pure motives, will last.

Mom: Well, I need to get these groceries home before they go bad. Thanks for letting me drop by and help!

Leader: No, thank YOU. You were very helpful!

Mom: Anytime. Eat your fruit…

Leader: I will.

Mom: …AND your vegetables!

Leader: Okay.

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

g

Let’s Search!—Bible DashSupplies: Bibles

Ask all kids with Bibles to participate, or invite a few volunteers to come to the front. As children hold Bibles closed with hands on covers, state the Bible reference twice, then on the command “SEARCH!” have the students race to locate the verse. Once they have a finger on the verse, they can stand and call out, “FOUND IT!” Have the first child read the verse aloud while you project the verse on a screen via PowerPoint. See suggestions below for comments on each verse. Keep your comments brief and to the point of the lesson.

Matthew 3:8 Produce fruit through repentance.John 15:12 My command is this—love each other as I have loved you.Mark 12:31 Love your neighbor as yourself.1 Peter 5:8 Be self-controlled and alert.Philippians 4:5 Let your gentleness be evident to all.John 14:27 My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.Matthew 25:21 You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.1 Thess. 5:14 Be patient with everyone.Ephesians 4:32 Forgive each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Paul’s Power Principle: When we yield ourselves to God, His Holy Spirit produces fruit in our lives.

Let’s Learn!—The Fruit God Produces Galatians 5 Open up a newspaper and pretend to read some headlines. Suggestions:

Bank was robbed, robbers got awayThieves stealing cars downtownGraffiti covers statue at parkPolitician admits to taking a bribePolice officer gets a ticket for speedingMore marriages end in divorce than twenty years ago

The world has a lot of bad news, because our world is broken. There is much sin in the world, and the results of sin are evident in the news every day. We’ve been learning about the fruit of the Spirit, which is good fruit, but there is bad fruit, too. Bad fruit is the result of the sinful nature—sometimes called “the flesh.” The same chapter in the Bible that identifies the fruit of the Spirit also lists the fruit of sin, and we’ll look at that today, too. But why do both kinds of fruit exist in our world?

Remember how our puppet was upset because weeds grew up around his plants? He couldn’t pull all the weeds without hurting his plants. Jesus told a story about the same situation. Let’s read that now.

•••••••

••

••••••

EXPLORE SCRIPTURESeize on the children’s interest and direct them into God’s Word.

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

gRead Matthew 13:24-30. As we learned previously, God planted the seed of salvation. Many of you have responded and asked Jesus to be your Savior. But God’s enemy, Satan, is also at work planting seeds of temptation and leading people away from God. The Lord allows him to do so because God wants to see who we will listen to and obey. He is watching to see what choices we will make. But the time will come when God will judge Satan and those who disobey the Lord. And God will reward those who chose to obey Him.

Read Matthew 13:34-40. At the end of the age, God will finally judge the world. But until then, we have the opportunity to make good choices and choose to follow God every day. This is how God’s Spirit produces good fruit through us.

Object Lesson: A dead branch Show a tree branch that has no leaves and certainly no fruit. Ask the children to try and guess what kind of tree it is from. They will be unable to guess. The Bible says that you can tell a tree by its fruit (Matthew 12:33; Luke 6:44). Without fruit, you can’t tell what type of tree this branch is from. Christians who don’t produce good fruit are like this branch—no one can even tell whether or not they are Christians!

We’ve learned that producing spiritual fruit involves cooperation between God and believers. First, God forgives the sins of those who trust Jesus’ death on the cross. That is the best news ever! Then, God lovingly disciplines His children so they obey His commands and grow to be like Christ. And finally, God’s Spirit produces fruit as believers yield their lives to Jesus (Matthew 3:8; Luke 3:8).

Matthew 3:8 GOD’S PART: Producing Fruit | YOUR PART: Repentance

Ask for a volunteer from the audience. Ask him or her to come to the front and to start walking toward one of the walls in the room. Every time the child hears you say the word “repent,” he or she should turn around and start walking in the opposite direction. As you explain the word repent, the child will keep turning around and changing directions. Not only will this entertain and engage the kids, it will also emphasize the meaning of the word in a memorable way.

What does it mean to “repent?” It means to change your mind about something. It literally means to go the other way. When you realize that something you are doing is wrong, you change your mind about it—you repent—and go the other way.

Let’s look at the two lists in Galatians 5. We’ll call one list the fruit of sin and the other list the fruit of the Spirit.

v. 16 Walking in the Spirit keeps believers from obeying the fleshv. 17 A silent battle is taking place inside; we need God’s helpvv. 19-21 This is the list of the fruit of the sinful nature*vv. 22-23 Here is the list of the fruit of the Spirit. Note: there are no laws against these—

interesting!vv. 24-25 The secret to producing fruit is not effort—it is dying to self, staying close to

Jesus, and keeping in step with the Spirit

* Do not be nervous about reading this list of sins to the children. Younger children will not understand many of the words, and when it comes to “sexual immortality,” older children know that there are sexual sins in this world. You do not need to dwell on these, but it will not surprise them to hear the world “sexual” in a list of bad things. If you want to define some of the unfamiliar words to help children relate, here are some suggestions—impurity (dirty jokes), debauchery (really bad things), discord (disobeying parents and authorities), selfish ambition (cheating), dissensions (arguing/fighting), factions (cliques), and orgies (drunken parties).

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

gBiblical Insight: The last “Fruit of the Spirit” is self-control. Many people will say it is the most difficult, because controlling yourself is hard work. But here is a powerful insight from God’s Word. In the original Bible language, Greek, the word “self” isn’t even there. The Greek word for “self-control” is literally “inner-strength”—meaning that it has nothing to do with “self”—it is strength from the inside to do what is right. Therefore, the ability to do what is right doesn’t come from “self,” it comes from God. So it really isn’t “self-control,” it’s more like “God-control”!

Dee’s Disciple Tip: Plants need SUNLIGHT to be transformed. Christians need GOD’S SPIRIT to be transformed.

KeyVerseTopic: The Vine and the Branches Reference: John 15:5

1) Repeat the verse with hand motions from Lesson 1.

2) Repeat the verse silently, saying the verse in the minds only.

3) Now, we will say the verse backwards! Turn your back to the audience and say the verse. Have the children do the same thing.

4) Is there a child here who can say the verse UPSIDE DOWN AND BACKWARDS?! Invite children to come on stage and say the verse standing on their heads while you hold their feet and someone holds a microphone to their mouths.

Note: Always begin the verse with “Jesus said” so the children understand that this is a direct quote from Jesus. Otherwise, younger children may misunderstand, thinking they are saying they are the vine as they recite.

�

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

g

Dramatize the PointAct this out or read as a story. Supplies: weight lifting equipment, weight lifter, blindfold or motorcycle helmet

For this drama you need a very strong weight lifter who won’t appear until the skit for maximum effect! It may be a lot of work to bring in weight equipment, but the impact on the kids will be well worth the effort.

A boy is lying on his back (on a bench press) lifting very small 5 pound weights—straining, moaning, and groaning like it is very difficult work. A friend comes by and encourages him to lift more weight, so he doubles the weight to 10 lbs. on each end of the bar—while the boy doubles his straining and groaning. The friend then encourages him to lift a LOT more than that! So, they fill the bar with all the weights! (Make sure it is not more than the next weight lifter can handle.) The boy lies down and as much as he tries, he can’t lift the weight. The friend keeps saying, “You aren’t trying hard enough!” So he tries harder and harder. (Be funny about it, doing all kinds of silly positions, but be safe.) Finally, the friend says, “You aren’t doing it right. Remember in Star Wars when Obi-Wan Kenobi put the blast shield on Luke Skywalker and had him use the Force? Let’s try that!” The boy is skeptical, but agrees to try it. He puts on the blindfold or helmet and tries again. Just as he gets his grip on the bar, have the weight lifter come out and take his position behind the bar, helping the boy lift but not saying anything. The boy struggles, but does it! The weight lifter disappears so that the boy never sees him. The boy is so excited, and the skit ends with him saying things like, “The Force is real! Obi-Wan Kenobi was right!” etc. as they leave, while the friend winks at the audience.

TIP: If you use a volunteer that the kids love and know well, they will tell him after church about the weight lifter. He can drag out the fun by claiming not to believe the weight lifter story and describing how he could “feel” the Force lifting the weights.

The boy would never be able to lift those weights on his own. He needed help! And he got an invisible helper. Christians can trust God to be our invisible spiritual weight lifter!

Object Talks—Donut Quote MeSupplies: video projection

The video clip for this lesson features Karl, the Kidologist, doing a short object lesson featuring a conversation between a donut and a pear who compare the similarities between eating healthy and watching what we put into our hearts spiritually. Both determine whether we will have healthy results physically and spiritually! Use this short teaching video to show the kids or to train a leader to do the talk “live.” Featured verse: Luke 6:45

INSPIRE ACTIONEncourage kids to apply the Bible truth to their lives.

�0

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

gLet’s Talk!—Small Group DiscussionIf you break into small groups, the following discussion questions will help your group leaders get personal with their students.

1) Name something you see in the world that is a result of sin.2) Which fruit of the flesh do you think kids struggle with most?3) Which fruit of the Spirit is easiest for you? Which is hardest?

Distribute a note card and pencil to each child. Have the kids write one sin that they know God would like to see them repent of. Let the students write privately and then rip their cards up. Mix the pieces together in a pile in the center of the group. Have everyone lay their hands on that pile and pray that God’s Spirit would help them enjoy victory over those sins. As a group, take the pieces over to a trashcan and throw them away!

DiscipleTown Super CitizenPrint out nine Super Citizen Certificates, each with a different fruit of the Spirit on it. Present each one to a child who best represents that fruit (e.g. a loving child, a gentle child, a kind child, etc.).

Let’s Pray!Prayer: Today can be a new beginning for your kids. No longer seeking to merely “be good,” instead they can determine to work toward getting closer to God. This can be the beginning of a whole new approach in their walk with the Lord!

Dear God, thank You for giving us new life and planting us as new seeds. You knew that the enemy would come and sow sinful seeds in our midst. Thank You for being a Gardener who provides just what we need to grow. We know the time will come when You will judge the world, and all the evil we see will be destroyed. But until then, with Your help, we want to grow spiritual fruit that lasts! Help us draw closer to You every day! Help us accept Your loving discipline and pruning so we can spot bad fruit and reject it right away! Help us repent and run the other way—back to You.

Lord, make us more loving, more joyful, and more peaceful. Help us grow in patience, kindness, and goodness. Empower us to be faithful and gentle. And help us discover the inner control that only You can give. We want You to produce fruit in us that will last for all of eternity! In Jesus’ name, amen.

Cy’s Challenge: In bed every night this week, think through each fruit of the Spirit. Re-view your day and try to remember a time when you demonstrated each one. Ask God to fill you with even more of His Spirit tomorrow!

Let’s Review!If you have extra time, use these review questions to keep the kids focused on the lesson until time to dismiss. A handful of candy will help you keep their attention. After each question, take a minute to reiterate the lesson point related to the question.

1) True or False: If we try hard enough, we can produce spiritual fruit.2) How many different spiritual fruits are listed in Galatians 5?3) God prefers fruit that is a) fresh b) kind of fresh c) old.4) Both trees and Christians are known by their .5) Sunlight is to plants like is to Christians.6) To repent means to .

Awarded to

on month day year

for

Bringing a Guest

award

presented by

��

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

gFor the HomeDiscipleTown Table Talker: Give each child a copy of this week’s DiscipleTown Table Talker. Be sure to show them how to put it together and encourage the kids to ask their parents to lead family devotions three times this week.

Parent E-mail: Copy and send the e-mail below to help your parents connect with their kids during the week. Send them early in the week, but not on Sunday. As a courtesy, be sure parents have opted to receive these e-mails. Review and edit as necessary to reflect the lesson elements you have used. You can also find this e-mail as a Microsoft Word document in your download bundle.

Dear Mom and Dad,

We just concluded our four-week series on How To Grow Spiritual Fruit. We guided your child through a study of salvation, growing up godly, abiding in Jesus, and finally—allowing God to produce spiritual fruit through us. Rather than encouraging your child to “be good,” we let the kids in on a secret that many Christians are slow to learn—trying to be good in our own strength is the quickest way to spiritual frustration and defeat. A better strategy is to yield to God’s control and let Him transform us from the inside out!

We have compared the four things plants need to grow to four things Christians needs. First, plants begin as a seed—and people need to accept the seed of salvation. Water gives plants nourishment just as the Bible gives Christians spiritual nourishment. Next, we compared being planted in good soil to being part of a good church and having healthy friendships. Finally, we pointed out that just as the sun helps transform plants, so God’s Spirit transforms Christians as they tap into God’s power.

I hope that you have seen encouraging changes in your child as he or she has sought to grow closer to God. Perhaps you have seen fruit of the Spirit in your child’s young life this month!

Here are some questions to engage your child about last week’s lesson.

1) How did the boy lift all the weights in the skit? (a weight lifter helped him)2) Why was the puppet upset? (weeds were growing among his plants)3) What were some of the Shopping Mom’s tips for spotting good fruit? (fresh, no spots, etc.)

Take advantage of the DiscipleTown Table Talker your child brought home. It will help spark spiritual conversations around your dinner table this week!

Making Disciples for Jesus,

[Your Name]

��

How

to G

row

Spi

ritu

al F

ruit

—Le

sson

4 ©

200

9, D

isci

ple

Land

. All

right

s re

serv

ed. W

ritte

n by

Kar

l Bas

tian

/ Kid

olog

y.or

g

Additional IdeasFruit of the Spirit Hand Motions Help children learn the fruits of the Spirit with hand motions. Teach all the motions, then turn it into a game. The leader calls out one of the fruit and the kids have to quickly do the hand motion for that fruit. Any who do the wrong motion are out and must sit down. The last child to finish the motions (because of watching the others) is out as well.

Option: Select a group of ten to compete on stage.

Love: Hug the person beside youJoy: Stretch arms upward and out as though cheeringPeace: Make peace signs with both handsPatience: Tap index finger on wrist where a watch would beKindness: Pat someone on the backGoodness: Put both thumbs upFaithfulness: Fold hands in prayer pose (palms together) and look up to heavenGentleness: Go up on tiptoesSelf-Control: Grab self by putting arms all the way around as far as possible

Marshmallow Attack! In advance, have everyone save empty soda cans. Each team is equipped with a good supply of cans and several bags of giant marshmallows. Divide the room into two sides, with a large “Free Zone” (at least 10 feet—kids are better at accurately throwing marshmallows than you might think) between the two sides where no one can go. Put a masking tape line on each side of the free zone. The object of the game is to stack twenty-one cans in a pyramid shape. Each team can be working on several pyramids. However, each team is allowed to throw marshmallows at the other team in an attempt to knock down their cans.

Teams may want to divide into Stackers and Attackers (defense and offense). The stack must be on the masking tape line, so as to prevent the possibility of a person standing in front of the stack to protect it. They can use their hands to attempt to block, but not their whole bodies. The first team to stack twenty-one cans into a pyramid wins. If you run out of time before anyone wins, the team with the most “intact” cans is the winner.

In this world, we have to fend off the attacks of the Enemy at the same time as we are trying to build the Kingdom of God! It is a lot of work, but in the end, with God’s help we will be victorious!

•

•

BONUS MATERIALSUse these options to extend your time or as substitutes for the ideas above.

How to Grow Spiritual Fruit—Lesson 4 © 2009, DiscipleLand. Permission granted to reproduce for volunteers.

DIRECTOR’S NOTESThe words in italics are notes for you and your puppeteers; they are not to be read aloud.

[Puppet is moping and quiet.]

Leader: Hey, [puppet name], is everything okay?

Puppet: Not really. Remember those seeds you gave us to plant a few weeks ago?

Leader: Sure, from our lesson about the seed of salvation.

Puppet: Well, I planted them in my backyard, and they are starting to come up.

Leader: That’s great! So why are you upset?

Puppet: Because some of the plants are weeds!

Leader: Oh dear.

Puppet: [Getting frustrated.] I tried to pull them up, but I couldn’t do it without accidentally pulling up my plants or hurting their roots.

Leader: Yeah, weeds can be a problem.

Puppet: [Points accusingly at audience.] I think one of these ragamuffins came over to my house at night and planted weeds!

Leader: Now, now, no need to be like that. I’m sure none of these kids would do anything that mean-spirited. Weeds can come from many places—every gardener deals with them.

Puppet: Oh yeah?

Leader: Sure. In fact, even Jesus told a story about weeds.

Puppet: He did?

Leader: Yes, He did! He wanted to illustrate a problem people have wondered about for a long time.

Puppet: Weeds?

Leader: Not really, but the story will give you advice about what to do with your weed problem.

Puppet: Well then I’m all ears!

*PUPPET: Develop a puppet character to use regularly. The children will get to know the personality and enjoy these regular visits. Dee, Cy, and Paul puppets are available at DiscipleLand.com

Puppet Intro—Weedness

apple

avocado

blackberry

cantaloupe

apricot

banana

blueberry

cherry

coconut

cranberry

grape

guava

crab-apple

fig

grapefruit

kiwi

lemon

mango

nectarine

papaya

lime

melon

orange

peach

pear

pomegranate

star-fruit

tomato

pineapple

raspberry

strawberry

watermelon

curriculum Map

.comTM

How to Grow Spiritual Fruit

How to Make Good Friends

How to Walk in the Spirit

How to Be Jesus’ Disciple

How to Build Character

How to Navigate the New Testament

How to Explain My Faith

How to Earn Eternal Rewards

How to Follow God’s Plan

How to Make Good Choices

How to Navigate the Old Testament

How to Study My Bible

How to Know the Truth

How to Discover Gifts and Talents

How to Walk Victoriously

How to Meet with God

How to Worship God

How to Use My Bible

How to Show Respect

How to Pray

How to Be Faithful Workers

How to Love God

How to Memorize God’s Word

How to Be Global Christians

(DiscipleTown Units in no particular order)

Each DiscipleTown Unit will teach your kids an essential “how to” skill to become victorious disciples of Jesus!